New pond at Guindy National Park arrests flooding in area

CHENNAI: While several areas in the city are struggling to cope with water logging, it's not a problem in and around the Guindy National Park (GNP). Wildlife authorities have dug out a new pond at the interception point on the south western boundary of the park. Zoo director K S S V P Reddy told TOI that in the past rainwater from Raj Bhavan and Velachery main road used to run off and mix with sewage lines in Velachery. Now, with the formation of a new pond on the south-western part of the park, water runoff during rainy days is totally arrested, he said.

The work on the new pond began in March and it was completed in April. The new pond, named 'Jabbar Odai', is four metres wide and 2.5 metres deep. Its bund extends up to 650 metres, and runs parallel to the Velachery main road, behind the forest department's nursery. After the recent rain, the pond is brimming with water.

Besides the new pond there are six smaller ponds in the area. They retained water till May. Several wild animals, including spotted deer and black buck, use the ponds to quench their thirst, Reddy said.

Chennai Wildlife warden K Geethanjali said besides Jabbar Odai, GNP has six other ponds -- Appalangulam, Kathangollai, Duck pond, Bogi pond, Lab pond, Snake Park percolation pond. The rain during the past 10 days brought in a lot of water to all the seven ponds inside GNP. The ponds will retain water till June next year, he said. Water from these ponds are pumped through pipes and stored in tanks inside the Children's Park.

A former wildlife officer recalled that in 2001, the first ever effort to arrest runoff water from Polo Grounds was made by constructing a bund along the ground. Palm leaves were planted on the bund to strengthen it and later several shrubs and herbs started growing on it, the officer said.

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